Amidst the Smoke and the Flowers
by Spades And Swords
Summary: A collection of Drabbles about Gustave, The Station Inspector, and Lisette ,The Flower Lady.


**_AN: Well, I watched Hugo a few days ago and I absolutely loved it! It was so much better than I had expected and of course, The Inspector was my favorite character, so I really needed to write this fic (my feels are to blame ) I haven't read the book, so I may have taken some liberties with the drabbles, but I tried to stay close to the movie!canon.  
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**_First_**

She was the first thing he truly noticed on his first day of work at the Gare Montparnass railway station. And soon, she became the first thing Gustave would think about everyday when he woke up in the mornings, amidst the smoke of the trains and the fragrance of the flowers.

**_Smile_**

Sometimes, when she caught a glimpse of him looking at her from far away, she would give him a small, soft smile. And in those moments, not even the sound of the working clocks could convince Gustave that time had not frozen in a beautiful eternity.

**_Like_**

"I-I think she actually… likes me."

**_Brave_**

He had fought in the war and had seen death right in the eye.

So, how was it possible he wasn't brave enough to simply approach that florist and ask for her name?

**_Attempt_**

Gustave numerous attempts of talking to that beautiful florist were as successful as his attempts of stopping his leg brace's constant creaks.

**_Nightmares_**

Even the pain on his leg was nothing compared to the pain he felt on his nightmares. And those nightmares had a name.

It was _war_.

**_Names_**

"Her name is Lisette, Gustave, not _flower girl _or _female florist._"

"How do you know that, Madam Emile? Is female intuition really that sharp?"

"No. I know it because I asked her. Come on, Gustave! Be brave and go talk to her. She won't bite."

"Bite? Why would she ever do that? Is biting a secret salute among you women?"

"…Never mind, dear. Just concentrate on drinking your coffee."

Gustave had never been more confused in his whole life.

**_Beauty_**

"Lisette…What a beautiful name. Don't you agree, Maximilian?"

**_Morning_**

"Good Morning, Monsieur Inspector."

Gustave couldn't believe it. She was actually talking to him. His heart began to thump in his chest.

He had to say something clever.

He had to make a good first impression.

"G-good morning, flower Girsette."

**_Escape_**

Had he really called her that? And why had he saluted her in a military way? And why was he blushing? And why was he so stupid?

And dear heavens, she looked so confused.

And oh no what had he just done.

His big opportunity, ruined.

His first impression, ruined.

Everything was ruined and everything hurt.

"I-I must go, now…Have a good day, Lady Flower,I mean-Lisette…"

He didn't wait for her to say goodbye, and instead, Gustave quickly walked away.

Ashamed, and alone.

**_Reality_**

Sometimes, he thought his whole life was a dream, while war was the true reality always waiting for him to wake up.

**_Stranger_**

Sometimes, she wished he could be something more in her life than just a simple acquaintance, little more than a stranger.

**_Awkward_**

Lisette had never met someone as awkward as him.

A rather peculiar trait, she thought. But it wasn't necessarily a flaw.

Not at all.

**_Drinks_**

Gustave loved coffee

Lisette loved tea.

And they both loved each other; though in words they had never expressed it.

At least, not yet.

**_Namesake_**

"Do you have any other name besides _'Inspector',_ monsieur?" she asked him in an almost jokingly manner.

"Of-of course, mademoiselle. My name is Gustave. Inspector Gustave Dasté." Gustave answered ,with his second best smile on his lips.

"Gustave…?" She repeated, and suddenly, all of her joviality faded away from her voice, like the life fades away from a flower in winter. "My ...my brother's name was also…"

But she was unable to continue. With a lump in her throat and tears in her eyes, she walked away, leaving a confused and worried Gustave behind.

**_Dreams_**

He dreams of the times when his body wasn't broken.

She dreams of the times when her family wasn't broken.

**_Flowers_**

Gustave had never liked flowers.

But that didn't stop him from loving the woman who sold the flowers.

**_Jealous_**

"Just because I clench my fists and my blood boils every time I see that Dali guy smiling at her it doesn't mean I'm jealous. Gustave Dasté is not a jealous man. Right, Maximilian?"

Maximilian, covered in soap, silently looked at him from the other side of the bathtub.

**_Humor_**

"…and then that little thief started crying, and when I told him he was being sent to the orphanage, he cried even louder."

Gustave laughed, telling that anecdote as if it was the funniest joke in whole France.

Lisette, far from being amused, covered her mouth with her hands.

"Oh lord, how dreadful!" she whimpered.

"Dreadful? No, it's just justice." He explained to her.

Gustave could be a really sweet guy, but Lisette couldn't deny his sense humor was a bit cruel.

And above all, extremely old fashioned.

**_Echoes_**

_I'm truly sorry, son. But your leg will never heal._

_Never heal…_

_Never…_

Gustave is unable to forget the look on the doctor's face when he told him those terrible news. His eyes were so full of pity, so full of shame.

Slowly, Gustave closes his own eyes, and hopes that the sound of the arriving trains will take away the echoes howling inside his mind.

**_Pieces_**

Gustave wouldn't say he was alone. After all, he had Maximilian and his job.

Lisette never thought of herself as a lonely person, for she had her flowers and her friends at the station.

No, they weren't alone.

But if anything, they felt incomplete, as if a piece of their beings had been stolen from their lives.

Or perhaps, those pieces hadn't been stolen.

They were merely lost, and what is lost can always be found.

**_Dog_**

"You know, Gustave? When I first saw him, I thought Maximilian was a vicious dog. But deeps inside, he is just a big sweetheart." Lisette said, petting the dog on his head."Just like his owner…"

"Indeed, just like his…" Gustave blinked a few times. "Wait, what is that supposed to mean?"

Lisette laughed in response.

**_Crush_**

"Oh, admit it Lisette." Inquired one of her usual costumers with a sly smile on her lips. "You have the biggest crush on the Station Inspector, don't you?"

"What?" Lisette asked, a little confused "No, of course I…"

She took her eyes away from the flower arrangement she was fixing and looked at the Inspector, who was checking the station's clock. From that angle, he didn't look that bad.

Not bad at all.

Her heart started to beat a bit faster, and her cheeks became red and warm.

"Well…maybe a little."

**_Graveyard_**

They met at the graveyard one cloudy morning of autumn.

Gustave was there to pay his respects to his fallen comrades.

Lisette, to put a single flower on her brother's grave.

They slowly approached each other, and without saying anything, they hugged under the empty, gray sky.

**_Definition_**

"So what if your leg will never properly heal? You aren't just an injured leg ,Gustave Dasté. You are so much more. I know that, and everyone in the station does. I think it's time you do, too"

**_Duty_**

"No, Lisette. It is my duty, and I can't be merciful with those thieves…"

"Be reasonable, Gustave. They are only kids! And not only kids, they are orphans!"

"Orphans or not, they have stolen, and stealing is a crime. And crimes make criminals, whatever their age."

**_Uniform_**

The first thing Gustave had done after returning home from the war was to throw away all of his uniforms. He never could have guessed he would wear one again, and much less if he wore it to go see a movie.

In fact, the uniform he was wearing wasn't even his own.

"It fits you well." Lisette whispered as she buttoned his neck. "I know my brother would have wanted liked you to keep it…he-he would…"

He silenced her with a soft kiss.

"No, Lisette. Let's not allow our pasts ruin our presents anymore."

"Not anymore."

"Never again."

**_Movie_**

"The movie was really good, but there's one thing I don't understand: why did the moon had a face?"

"Well, movies are art, Gustave. You can't expect to understand them if you only use logic."

"I know that. But what I don't get is why the moon had a face!"

**_Fixed_**

Letting go of his past was a hard thing to do. Gustave wondered if he would ever be able to let go of it for good.

But truth was …that perhaps ,he didn't need to let go of it all.

His past was just as his leg: They both hurt, but that pain was just a miniscule part of his life. A life so big and full of happiness that it almost felt like a dream ,only that Lisette was always there to remind him that it was all real.

Gustave had finally found his missing piece.

Yes. There was no doubt about it:

Gustave Dasté was happy.

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_**Thanks for reading!**_


End file.
